Warning: I don't have a beta-reader (yeah that hasn't changed either) and as English is not my main language I'm bound to make mistakes. I hope it's not too bad and you'll bear with me.
If you don't like, don't read. Flames will probably be ignored; constructive critics and other reviews are always very welcome. Read and enjoy.
So here we are with chapter 17. Sorry for the delay, but work has been all kind of impossible in the past weeks. I should finally quiet down and I should be able to write more regularly, at least I hope so. This is a complicated chapter… probably more angst that what I'm used to publish. So don't hate me… don't forget Meddling is prequel to my other Stris stories. And now onto it. It's a little longer than usual.
Disclaimer: Don't own, just playing around so don't sue… Belongs to CBS Studios, Sony Pictures Television and many others.
"We have every right to create our own destiny, but none to interfere in someone else's." Martin Rubin. ;)
Chris looked down at her phone when it chimed. Hondo had asked her to write the report on their last intervention, saying it would be good training for her. She frowned when she saw the name on the display and grabbed her device to check the message. It had been a few days since Street's double date with Luca and nothing much had happened since, and she was clearly thankful for that. There was only so much she was ready to go through with this pretend. But seeing now Julian's name on her display, reminded her about his phone call that evening. She grimaced unhappily, she had yet to talk to Street about the other man contacting her out of the blue and she was definitely not looking forward to it, knowing his feelings on the matter.
The text was short and to the point "In LA this weekend", he had added a broadly smiling emoji for good measure it seemed, but she didn't really feel smiling right now. She placed her phone into the back pocket of her pants as she stood up. She needed to tell Street and he would probably be pissed she had not told him Julian had called the previous week. To be honest she had completely forgotten about the other man. But considering how she disliked Lauren's shadow in their lives, she perfectly understood his own reaction to Bonnie's cousin.
The last time they had discussed him, it had almost started an argument. It was no wonder she was now doing her best to avoid the topic altogether. But sadly, this was not a solution. At one point she'd have to face the music. But just as she was walking towards the door, she remembered Street was with Deac at the Academy and there was no way she would be able to talk to him right away. She felt a little like a coward preferring the discussion to take place at HQ, where he couldn't react as strongly as if they were in a private setting. She sighed heavily and proceeded to walk back to the desk. She fished her phone from her pocket and decided to text Street about that new development when the door suddenly opened. She turned around and groaned when she saw who was standing there.
"You don't sound too happy to see me." Tan joked, clearly a little uncomfortable judging by his demeanor.
"Nope." She answered with a grin belying her harsh word.
"Let me guess…" He pointed at her phone before scratching his forehead in annoyance. "Julian already texted you the good news."
"He totally did." She confirmed as she leaned against the desk and crossed her arms in front of her. She studied her friend with an inquiring eye and couldn't help but relish at his uneasiness. "Let me guess… Bonnie sent you."
His answering groan made her laugh, and she shook her head in derision.
"The moment he confirmed to her he was going to be in LA for a whole week, she called." He admitted with a crooked smile. "And of course, you can guess what she tasked me to do."
"Of course." She nodded with a mocking grin. "And I suppose you want me to play along."
"It would just be a dinner." He pleaded with her, walking the few steps that separated them. "I mean Street went to his date with Lauren. Nothing really changed after that. And Luca was happy."
"So, you discussed the date with Street." She wondered, teasing him by not answering his question right away. His confused stare widened her grin. "I heard the restaurant was quite nice… Luca didn't stop raving about it…"
"We could go there too." He took his chance to bring the matter back to what was bothering him, but Chris wasn't ready to give him that satisfaction just yet.
"Where was it again?" She pushed as if she hadn't been there herself. She studied the young man with innocent eyes and tilted her head when he nervously cleared his throat. Teasing Tan was always so satisfying.
"In Santa Monica." He frowned when he tried to remember. "I'll ask Luca… or Street for the exact address… I must have the name somewhere. They said the seafood was to die for. And you love that, right?"
"I love what?" She slowly pushed away from the desk and walked behind it again. She took her time to sit down and place carefully her phone next to the computer.
"Seafood… Are you playing dumb with me?" He suddenly wondered, finally getting she was being difficult on purpose.
"That's not a very clever thing to say to me, Tan." She chided him with a disapproving headshake. "Especially if you consider you came here to ask me for a favor."
"I'm inviting you to a good dinner in a fancy restaurant." He corrected her and she grinned.
"I guess any woman would do then." She typed her password as she logged in again, pretending to have forgotten about him.
"Come on Chris." He pleaded unhappily. "I'll make it up to you."
"Hmm…" She hummed doubtfully as she rested her back heavily against her chair to stare at him. "I don't think I can accept."
He deflated immediately at her words and leaned over the table to look into her eyes, his stare pleading.
"Tell me your price…"
"We have several conversations to finish, before I can even consider accepting your invitation." She stated bluntly. "You've been dodging too many questions, Mister! That has to change."
"Questions?" He repeated, a frown pleating his brow.
She leaned forward, now their faces only a few inches apart.
"About Julian." She stated coldly. "You started saying things at the party, but you never elaborated. If you want me to go on a… date with him, that won't do. I want full disclosure."
Tan straightened immediately at her demand and his frown deepened.
"I remember vividly how you pleaded with me not to spill the beans to Street or Bonnie."
"Are you blackmailing me?" He gulped visibly and her smile turned wicked.
"I'm just saying I know things that could have quite some consequences in your life." She smiled sweetly at him, and he felt sweat break over his brow.
"For all I know Street could already know…" He challenged her. "You could be onto it together and playing us."
"I guess we could." She tutored her features not to overly react to his comment. But she had to admit It was quite amusing to see he had, at least partially, figured them out. "But then there is Bonnie. I wonder how she would react if she knew you came clean to me…"
"You wouldn't tell her…" He immediately countered. "You have nothing to win from this."
"Well, call it petty revenge if you don't tell me what I want to know." She warned him with a sweet smile.
"That's not your style Chris." He looked at her in disbelief.
"And yet here we are." She grinned up at him.
"Okay, I don't have time right now…" He checked his watch nervously. He had thought it would only take a few minutes to get her onboard by playing the best mate card. "So, if I promise I'll tell you everything, will you agree to this dinner with Bonnie and Julian?"
"I've heard so many empty promises in my life, Tan." She told him bitterly. "I'm going to need more than that I'm afraid."
"Okay… What about tonight after shift?" He wondered. "I'll invite you to a drink… there's this great juice bar not far from here. I know you like that kind of things."
"5:45 pm?" She asked and he simply nodded. "Send me the address and we'll talk."
"Okay perfect." He turned on his heels and rushed to the door. And now he was late. "Later…"
"Better not disappoint me."
Tan clicked his tongue when he heard her last warning. This was not going as planned at all. He passed a hand over his face and wondered exactly how to explain everything and still have her accept the invitation. That would not be easy… Damn.
"Hey Street."
Lucas' voice made the young officer stop dead in his tracks. He had come back from the Academy and seeing his roommate right away was not high on his list of priorities. Right now, he wanted a shower and to change in new clothes as he felt sweaty and dusty, a combination he disliked.
"Hey Luca… you seem to be in an extremely good mood..." He said when he turned around. The older man looked at him, grinning happily.
"I spent the morning working on Black Betty." He explained. "I finally could get the mechanics to work on the changes I've been wanting for a while. I'll test drive her later today or tomorrow."
"Oh, so this has to do with that girl… I thought it was linked to your human girlfriend." He joked and his friend just shook his head.
"Both are important, but yeah today is all about Betty."
"Poor Melissa…" Street joked as he resumed his walk to the locker room.
"Hey… I wanted to talk to you about Lauren…"
"Lauren?" He wondered with a frown. "I haven't heard anything from her in a while… well I mean since the dinner. Is she okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, she's fine…" He continued, keeping in step with Street. "You know Hondo has his party in ten days… Lauren will still be in LA, and he has invited her… I was wondering…"
"You were wondering…" He repeated when he reached his destination.
"If maybe you could ask her to go with you…" Luca bit his lower lip nervously. "I'm only asking because she's again a little uncomfortable about going… when it was at my place, she thought it was kinda okay… but at Hondo's…"
"So, if I were to invite her, that would go more smoothly…" He finished for him, and Luca nodded vigorously. "You realize we're not dating… wouldn't that be a little weird?"
"You can go just as friends and… you'll never know how things will evolve…" He pushed carefully. "I mean you planned on going alone anyway, right?"
"Yeah, I was…" Street conceded, lost in his thoughts.
"See no real issue then." His friend pushed. "Chris will be there too… and probably some of the single guys from 60 SWAT… a nice little group… You could introduce her to them… And I heard Julian should be back in LA soon too… who knows, maybe he'll join also."
"Julian?" The name suddenly brought him out of his own musing. "Why would he be there?"
"Tan said that he was going to be back in LA for his interviews. His family has been pestering him to get a job on the West Coast again." The older man explained a little uncomfortably, clearly regretting having let that name slip in the conversation. "I know nothing for sure… well anyway… will you talk to Lauren about the party? Please? For me?"
"I'll think about it."
"Awesome!" He said obviously relieved. "Time to grab a bit to eat and got back to Betty. See you later at the house."
"Yeah bye." Street entered the locker room with a frown. He hadn't heard anything about Julian in a while. He needed to check with Chris if she knew anything about the other man.
"Ready for your party?" Deac wondered when he saw Hondo, checking his phone.
"How do you know that what I'm doing is not work related?" He wondered with grin.
"Because you gave your paperwork from yesterday's intervention to Chris and that the day has been rather quiet so far… If it were work related Hicks or someone else would have talked to you directly and not sent it to your phone." He explained pointing at the device. "Anything serious?"
"Nah… Last minute issues, but nothing I can't handle." He said with a grin. "Dad is already checking our other options."
"And there's still almost ten days."
"Exactly… How do you stand with your own plans?" He wondered with a huge grin.
"Don't ask… Annie is still pondering." Deac laughed with a playful eye roll. "I'm glad that 50 and 60 Squad are part of the game, that'll give us more time to come up with something. But I didn't join you for that… well not exactly…"
"Now I'm curious." Hondo frowned as he looked at his friend.
"The matchmaking…" He quipped and the other man laughed. "They had a call last night again..."
"And you're on matchmaking duty? I thought Luca was handling that."
"He's not married to Annie I am…" Hondo burst out laughing at his friend's resigned look. "Yeah, make fun of me..."
"Sorry Deac… it's just… Why is she not asking Nichelle to follow up on this?"
"That's an excellent question. Thank you for asking." He said in a derisive tone.
"Do I want to know?" When Deac just rolled his eyes again, he took the hint. "So, what are you supposed to be checking with me? I understood Lauren was to be invited… am I missing something else?"
"Julian, Bonnie's cousin will probably be in LA too." He declared seriously. "You need to add him to the invitation list."
"They're still trying to matchmake him with Chris?" Hondo questioned a little confused.
"Of course."
"Damn I had thought they had given up on that to be honest."
"No, but as Julian has not been in LA for a while, there was…" Deac paused to find the proper term. "A delay, for lack of a better word."
"Poor Chris…" He reflected a moment. "Is she at least aware of… the efforts? I mean she hasn't seen the guy since Tan's wedding. I can't imagine her taking that well if they just… push a guy on her like that."
"Apparently, they stayed in contact… or so they say…" He said sounding totally unconvinced.
"Okay I can add him on the list… Will Tan confirm he's coming?" Hondo wondered.
"I'll check with him."
"I can check with him too, if you want… it's my party after all." Hondo reminded him with a huge grin.
"Sure… Why not…" Deac shrugged, and his friend slapped him on the shoulder.
"You know I've got your back…" He told him dramatically. "And don't think I don't commiserate."
"Yeah, mock me… you're so very funny… You'll see when you are married." He warned him with a grin. "Even a saint can turn into a despot… remember what we told you at Tan's wedding ceremony."
"How could I forget about the Bridezillas?" Hondo laughed. "Okay back to work… I have a meeting with Hicks in a few. Keep me posted… or I keep you posted… Damn I forgot who is supposed to update who…"
"Very funny, very funny…" Deac shook his head and resumed his walk to the armory.
"So, this is where you've been hiding…"
Chris smiled happily when she saw Street enter the office she had been squatting since the beginning of the day.
"I'm finishing the report on yesterday's operation. I needed a little quiet." She explained. "Hondo said it was good training, but I'm inclined to think he just wanted some peace and quiet. This is tedious. It almost feels like hazing."
"Hmm." He simply hummed and she frowned at his strange behavior. He was still standing at the half-opened door. Usually, he would have closed it by now, happy to be able to catch some alone time together at HQ.
"Is something wrong?" She tried hesitantly.
"I don't know… Is there?" He started with a grimace. "I guess I'm a little peeved about hearing from Julian by Luca… So, am I missing something here?"
"Julian…" She repeated and she could feel her cheeks grow red. One look at Street made it clear her reaction had not been lost on him. He took a step inside the office and finally closed the door behind him.
"So, you have something to tell me." He pressed, clearly unhappy by having his suspicions confirmed.
"He called me a few days ago…" When he raised an eyebrow, she stuttered a little. "He… huh… well… first he called me to exchange phone numbers... I mean… Bonnie gave him my number, but he wanted me to have his… like officially…"
"Now that is interesting… And when did that happen?"
"The night you had the date with Lauren." Chris added uneasily.
"And you didn't feel like this was an information I might want to know? I mean that my girlfriend is exchanging phone numbers with a guy who's very much into her…"
"It slipped my mind." He chuckled derisively at her words, and she couldn't help but bite her lower lip as the guilt was eating her up.
"No, it didn't. You just decided it would be less bothersome not to tell me." He concluded unhappily. "What I don't know, can't hurt me. Right? I gave you an earpiece so you could spy on me during that dinner… but you didn't share Julian was asking you for your number… That happened the same night…."
"I'm sorry…" She stood up and walked next to him, but when she motioned to take his hand, he put them both in his pockets. "So, I was a coward… I didn't think anything of it."
"But you did, if not you would have told me."
"It's not different from you and Lauren." She said, suddenly a little irritated by his reaction.
"You can't be serious." Street looked at her, a pained expression in his eyes. "Of course, it's different. Lauren has no clue I'm dating someone, that asshole knows full well we're together… and he's still playing that little game."
"What? I'm sure it's not like that! And even if he did, you know this doesn't matter to me…" She said quickly, suddenly desperate to make him see reason. "You're the only person who matters."
"And yet you didn't tell me." He reminded her.
"Because he can try whatever he wants, it won't work." She insisted urgently.
"It's still not the point, Chris." Street shook his head dejectedly. "You didn't tell me. That is what bothers me. Anything else I should know about Julian?"
"He messaged me today he would be LA from this weekend on." She disclosed with a small voice. "I would have told you right away, but you were at the Academy this morning."
"You could have texted me…"
"I thought it would be better to explain everything face to face." She said, looking at him with pleading eyes. "I… I swear I was going to come clean."
"Hmm…" His grimace made her heart sink. "I really want to believe you."
"You can believe me." She interjected outraged by his doubts. "Why would I lie about that?"
"Probably for the same reason you didn't tell me in the first place. It was convenient for you not to tell me." He accused her. "You knew I was going to spend the evening at the house as it is Sports night… and yet you didn't text me to say we needed to talk before I went home."
"That's because I need to see Tan first… I wasn't sure I would be able to talk with both of you tonight…" She explained. "I wasn't sure at what time you would be back at HQ."
"You could have used your phone to figure it out... or even ask Deac about it if you didn't want to ask me directly." He pushed once more. "And is there any special reason you need to talk to Tan outside of HQ? I suppose it has something to do with Julian…"
"I wanted him to… explain his cryptic words about Julian… you know at the party." She reminded him. "We never finished that conversation."
"So, Tan asked you about having a double date with them?" Street concluded rightly. "And before giving your answer you want to understand what his real feelings about his in-law are…"
"Something like that…" She admitted and Street snorted in response. "Street…"
"Don't Street me like I am the unreasonable one in this discussion." He spat at her. "You know it's probably a good thing our busy schedules force us to be apart in the coming days. We should use that time to think about… What really matters…"
"You're being unfair." She called after him when he walked towards the door and opened it angrily.
"Enjoy your evening." He concluded with a frown. "I know I will."
She watched as he closed the door quietly and almost regretted, he hadn't slammed it shut. She knew that behind his anger, he was mostly hurt and that was worse to bear. She shook her head and sighed heavily. The whole situation felt so wrong. She took a steadying breath. Now was not the time to break down. She would talk to Tan and figure out what Julian was about and then she would make things right with Street. There was no other way.
Street was still angry when it was finally time to call it a day. He had dodged most of his colleagues the rest of the day, giving Tan and Chris a wide berth. He welcomed spending the evening at the house for the customary Sports night. Now he only wanted one thing, leave HQ as fast as possible to go home. He had decided against taking his shower here and simply decided to change into his city clothes and head to the house. He would cook a little something to change his mind from his current worries. It usually helped him forget the hassle of the day, concentrating on cooking had helped more than once when his mind was in turmoil.
He opened his locker impatiently and grabbed his backpack. He could do what he wanted, his mind always wandered back to Chris, and it brought a fresh stab of pain. He couldn't believe she would have hidden from him that Julian was trying to snake his way into her life. The guy had irked him from the onset. He doubted it would have been any different even they had not been in a relationship. He would have kept an eye on Julian in any circumstances, he was a sneaky bastard that much was sure. He knew they were a couple, and he still was trying his luck with Chris. Street didn't buy the whole just friend approach the other man was obviously using.
He sighed heavily. So yeah, he had been Chris' friend many years, but his feelings for her had been there from the start. A part of him had always hoped she would give him a chance. He didn't believe Julian was not in the same state of mind he had been. So, yeah maybe he was reading a bit too much into this, but Julian's persistence was very telling in his books. But he hated that he had reacted like that with Chris earlier. But he had felt just too raw, and he had been incapable to push the hurt away.
He realized he had been and probably still was rather irrational about the whole situation. It didn't matter she had kept saying it didn't matter, to him it did, and he couldn't pretend the contrary. And it didn't sit well with him that she even contemplated spending time with Julian even for a fake a date. He knew they were together and that made all then difference in his eyes. Julian was trying because he thought he was better than him. Street didn't doubt for a second that most women would easily fall for the blond surgeon. He was easy on the eye and had a great job… He had never wanted to play the part of the controlling boyfriend, but there he was. He needed some time apart to rethink the situation and probably put some perspective to the whole situation. With his current state of mind, It was going to be beneficial for both of them, even if it hurt. And man, it did hurt.
When the door opened, he turned around abruptly worried it could be Chris. But to his relief Luca walked in with a bright smile.
"Hey, you're already good to go?" His friend wondered. His happy expression turned into concern at his expression and Street regretted not having been able to hide his turmoil. "Is something wrong? You look all tense."
"Nah nothing serious…" He pretended with a forced smile. "A friend bailed on me this weekend. I'll find something else to do… don't worry."
"Hey…" Luca's face broke again in a huge smile. "Melissa and I are supposed to go boating in Santa Monica this Saturday. You could come with us. We tried to convince Lauren to join, but she adamantly refused saying she didn't want to be the third wheel and we would enjoy things better without her. You know Melissa… So, what do you think about that?"
His first instinct was to refuse the offer but looking at Luca's hopeful eyes he hesitated. Maybe this was a blessing after all. He loved going to Santa Monica even though being there would inevitably make him think of Chris and the great times they'd had there together. But it would change his mind of the current dark train of thoughts. And it didn't mean anything anyway. It would be an occasion to learn to know Melissa better as she seemed to be on the way of becoming a permanent feature in his roommate's life. And Lauren was also an extremely agreeable young woman.
"Come on… it'll do you good… a little sun, lots of sea…" His friend insisted.
"Okay, why not." Street finally agreed and Luca clapped his hands happily.
"Perfect! I'll tell the girls. You won't regret it."
Street laughed at his eagerness to share the news. He was no fool he knew full well he was playing into their game, but at that moment he didn't want to think about that. He also preferred to ignore the little voice that was telling him, how much Chris would hate knowing he was going to spend time with Lauren. She would feel this was a petty revenge for her actions. But that had not played a part… he chuckled unhappily at his very obvious lie.
Chris finally reached the juice bar Tan had chosen for their little discussion. She was late but right now she didn't care. She had waited for Street to leave the locker room before she had gone there. He had done everything possible to avoid her during the remainder of the day, at one point even abruptly changing directions when he had spotted her, and she had decided to respect his wishes at least for now. Once she knew more about the situation and Julian, she would initiate contact again. She hoped that by then he would be more open to a discussion, and they could put that behind them and have a better understanding of each other's perspectives. She needed to be more open with Street, make him see he was wrong to worry, but for now she needed to find out more about Julian.
When she entered the premises, she quickly scanned the packed place to find her friend. Tan stood up and waved for her to join him in a booth a little away from the loud crowd. She smiled nervously and joined him, falling heavily on the soft padded bench.
"Thanks for coming…" He eyed her inquisitively, noting right away how tense she seemed to be. "Is everything okay?"
She had seemed in a rather good mood when they had talked earlier but a lot of things could have happened, whether in their jobs or private lives. She smiled tensely and simply nodded, suddenly very interested in storing her backpack properly next to her. She sighed and nodded this time more forcefully.
"I'm just tired…" She quipped in morosely, hoping her friend wouldn't push the matter too far. She wasn't in the mood for that kind of chat, especially with him.
"It's only Wednesday…" He reminded gently with a teasing tone, and she chuckled somewhat warily. "Two or three more days depending on your schedule…"
"Yeah, I haven't decided on Saturday yet." She said with a frown. "It's a nice training but the timing sucks, but then I suppose the availability of the instructors played a big part on the proposed date… well anyway… we're not here to discuss this optional training, or are we?"
"No indeed." Tan admitted and sighed in anticipation of the discussion to come. "So, you wanted to know more about Julian… and my relationship with him. Do you maybe want to order something first? You might need a drink…"
"Is it so bad?" She frowned at him and grabbed the menu, checking the options and finding her favorite mix. She quickly ordered her Apple kiwi kale smoothie and turned her attention back to her friend. "Well, that should do for the nutrient part. So, spill it out, I'm sure Bonnie is waiting for you at home, and we don't want to keep her waiting."
"Yeah, she is." He nodded, thoughtful once more, wondering how to tell his story as objectively as possible. Chris was good at reading him, nothing but the complete truth would satisfy her. "Let me start by saying this is all very subjective and that my experience with him doesn't reflect those of my other family members."
When Chris frowned at his introduction, he bit his lower lip in annoyance. He was certainly not starting this conversation the right way. He had thought about it the whole day and nothing he had come up with had been good.
"Well, that's ominous…" She frowned and when the waitress placed her juice in front her, she thanked her before focusing her attention back on her friend. "Just spit it out. We'll decide together if it's that bad…"
"It isn't… Well… He has a very teasing nature, that is something we all agree on… And he's been like a brother to Bonnie… so I guess… he's been always protective and…"
"He always gives you a hard time." She finished for him, and he nodded.
"Sometimes it feels a little like hazing." He admitted and she leaned back against her chair to look at him seriously. "The issue for me is that he usually does that when there's only the two of us… I mean he has always been very nice and charming to my mom and my brother and his family. They love him… I seem to be the only one he has a problem with."
"Hazing? Like what?" She pushed, trying to understand the situation but failing so far. "I mean… Was it physical? Or just dumb talk?"
"Mostly just stupid remarks… Maybe I'm just over sensitive." He massaged his nape nervously. "I hadn't told Bonnie until recently when…"
"When she decided to couple me up with him…" She finished for him, and he nodded a little sheepishly. "So, you told her he was talking crap or something like that and she was surprised…"
"Yeah, she totally was… And as I said he's adorable with everyone, especially to my mom. He's always been an overachiever, so I always interpreted his words as he thought that me being a cop was an issue… That I was not good enough for Bonnie."
"But you're not just a cop, you're SWAT…" Tan shrugged, and she sighed. "Doctors and especially surgeons usually have huge egos… I'm not defending him but I'm just saying that kind of crap sort of comes with the territory. Have you confronted him? Told him you didn't like your interactions, and relationship in general?"
"No, I haven't… not really…" He admitted. "I told Bonnie, and we discussed it. She's convinced it's just a misunderstanding… or more a joke that has been pushed too far… It is true that we don't see each other often. Some guys are a little bit much…"
"And you should know we have enough of those in LAPD, even SWAT." She rolled her eyes, thinking about a few people she didn't particularly appreciate. "If you don't tell them, they'll never stop. Maybe Julian thinks you're comfortable with that kind of banter. You really need to tell him that you're not."
"Yeah, I know. I will have to, especially if he moves back to the West Coast. I'll see him way more often." Chris nodded and took another sip from her beverage. Tan looked gloomily at his own glass. "It's more my issue than anyone else. They all seem to like him. I thought he didn't like cops, but at the wedding he mixed with everyone rather well... So, I guess it's just me…"
"My cousins used to be rather… harsh to my boyfriends whenever I brought a guy home." She recalled fondly. "It was easier with the girlfriends. They didn't really dare say anything. The double standard was kind of funny to be honest."
"Was? They don't do it anymore?" He chuckled, happy for the distraction from his own situation.
"It's been a while since I last introduced anyone to the whole family." She laughed. "The fact that I don't live at my uncle's anymore has definitely changed the whole dynamic."
"So?" He wondered, looking at her hopefully.
"So? Would I accept to go on a double date with him and you and Bonnie?" When Tan nodded, she shook her head and the young man deflated in front of her eyes. "I don't know… He's nice enough, but I'm not really looking for anyone…"
"Yeah, I know… but not strings attached…" He promised and she sighed at his insistence. "Street went to the dinner Luca organized."
"He lives with Luca I think he felt a little compelled to accept." Chris reminded him and he sighed. "I'll think about it. Julian is not in LA yet, he said something about this weekend. I'm sure his parents will call the first dibs… There's no hurry or is there?"
"No of course not." He sighed heavily. "Bonnie just wanted to make reservations right now. She has another place lined up than the one Luca and Street went to. You usually need to book it at least a week in advance…"
"I'm not rushing into this." She said again. "I'll think about it and give you an answer… When I'll have decided. I can't say when this will be…"
"Yes, of course I understand."
"So that was it? No other big revelation about Julian?" When Tan shook his head at the last question, she sighed. "I was kind of expecting something big, like some shameful secret… I'm not dismissing what you have told me, Tan. It's just… It's not the vibe I got from him. I mean he definitely has a high opinion of himself, which is definitely not his best feature. But you need to talk to him and just… get it out in the open."
"I know… Bonnie said the same."
"And you need to talk to him before setting me up with him." She added, finishing her smoothie. "Now go home and I'll decide in the coming days. We can go to any restaurant… Doesn't have to be fancy and all…."
"Of course not, you are right." Tan nodded, a small smile appearing on his face. "Just don't make too many plans for next week. Bonnie wants the dinner to happen before Hondo's party…"
"Oh, should I expect having to go there with him?" She wondered, surprised by his admission.
"I didn't say that." He said once more uncomfortable and regretted his words right away.
"But I should expect it… I gather he was invited to the party then." When Tan nodded, she laughed. "So, it's more than just one date, it's in fact two in one. Good to know."
"Chris I'm sorry…" He started, but she stopped him by raising her hand.
"I'll decide and think about it." She stated firmly and he once more nodded. "Now go home to your wife and tell her you asked me. So, I am the one who needs to be blamed for any delay. Tell her that!"
"Yeah." He laughed, sounding relieved the conversation was finally over and he could go home. "So, I'll see you tomorrow. Have a nice evening."
"Thanks, you too."
She watched Tan as he left and waved at him when he turned around to look at her one last time. As soon as he was out of the view, she grabbed her phone and dialed Street's number. When the call went directly to voicemail, she frowned and disconnected. Maybe he was busy, or Luca was nearby. The little voice in her head was warning her, he could simply be screening her calls. He had been so very hurt and also angry. And he maybe just needed to cool down a little. She pondered over her options and decided to leave him a quick text about the discussion she had with Tan. She looked intently at the message and smiled when she saw he had read it. She waited a few moments before trying to call him again. Once more it went directly to voicemail, and she sighed heavily. This could prove more difficult that she had expected. She grabbed her bag and left the bar, feeling all sorts of heartbroken.
Please don't hate me